


Road Trip

by opal_sapphire



Category: Marvel, Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: F/M, M/M, Other
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-03-10
Updated: 2019-03-15
Packaged: 2019-11-15 04:43:22
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 20
Words: 6,274
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18066785
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/opal_sapphire/pseuds/opal_sapphire
Summary: You and Loki go on a road trip across America together.





	1. Chapter 1

"Y/N."

You made a face and rolled away.

"Y/N."

You ignored him.

"Y/N, darling, I know you're awake."

Awake was a state of being you didn't want to be. Now asleep, on the other hand, that was a different story. You would've been right back in this state if your covers didn't suddenly disappear.

Your eyes shot open and you sat up. Your admittedly intense glare landed on the culprit.

Loki was sitting on the foot of your bed, legs crisscrossed, and arms raised in an attempt to placate you. The grin on his face, however, did the opposite. You suspected he meant it to appear sheepish, but honestly it was devilish.

"What the _hell_ is so important that you wake me up at _three in the morning,_ " you growled.

Loki lowered his arms. "What exactly is the function of a rubber duck?"

You groaned and threw a pillow at him. You flopped back down and rolled over, determined to go back to sleep, covers or no. Loki laid down next to you.

"Y/N," he whispered.

"Loki, I swear--"

"You shouldn't swear."

You thwacked him, though you couldn't stop your lips from forming a small smile.

"What exactly is--"

"If you say rubber duck again I will murder you."

"--a road trip?"

You blinked and rolled over. "It's where you pack some stuff and travel somewhere, usually by car, but some people ride a motorcycle."

"Where do you go?"

"Anywhere you can drive to."

"How long does it take?"

You shrugged. "Depends on how far you go. Some people go for so long that they buy a RV or trailer beforehand so they have some place to properly sleep."

"Have you ever gone on one?"

"Not yet."

"Do you want to?"

"At some point, yeah."

"How do you feel about tomorrow?"

"You mean tomorrow as in today since it's after midnight or tomorrow as in Thursday?"

"I mean tomorrow as in Thursday."

You leaned on your elbow and propped your head up on your hand. "For real?"

"Yes," Loki replied.

You bit your lip. Your job as a writer allowed you to take a vacation as long as you were far enough from your deadline. You didn't have one, nor any other obligations to take care of.

"Okay," you said.

Loki smiled.

"We'll have to get some things, of course. But right now I wanna sleep since I was so rudely awoken," you added with a smile.

Loki reached down and pulled the covers back up and over you both. "Then sleep, because I won't let you take any of your catnaps tomorrow."

You laughed.


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> You and Loki try to decide where to go first.

"So where are we going?" You asked.

You and Loki were standing in front of a map on your wall, trying to decide where to go first. Everything was already packed; the only things missing were a destination and the route to get there.

"The only part of this country I'm familiar with is New York," he said. "I'd like to change that."

"So you want to see the rest of America?" You asked.

He nodded. You looked back at the map.

"How about we head for North Dakota?" You pointed to it on the map and looked back at him. "I can show you Mount Rushmore, and then we go from there."

"Alright," Loki replied.

\--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------  
"Y/N."

"Yeah?"

"We have spent the past five hours in this car with nothing but..."

"Christian Rock and Country."

"Right, _that_ coming from the radio. Tell me you can sing."

"I mean, I can sing, just not well."

"I will take anything over this."

"I'll remind you of that when you complain about my singing."

"Y/N, please."

You sighed. You had to admit, the music was getting on your nerves, too. Maybe when you stopped for gas you could see if you could find those CDs you'd hastily packed.

You glanced at Loki from the corner of your eye. He was giving you puppy dog eyes. If you weren't driving, you would slam your head on the steering wheel.

"Fine, fine. Name a song."  
\------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------  
"Hey, you said you'd take anything over the music on the radio!"

"Yes, but that was before you started singing!"

"I warned you, but you wouldn't listen, you were so desperate!"

"Not desperate enough for that!"

"Loki get back in the car!"

"I'm stiff!"

"We've got just a couple more miles until the next gas station, you can stretch out there!"


	3. Chapter 3

You'd managed to find one of your CDs when you'd pulled up to the gas station. You didn't think you'd ever seen Loki so happy to be at one, now that you thought about it.

Since it was night by the time you got there, and you'd been driving the whole day, Loki had insisted that he drive so you could sleep. You hadn't even bothered to argue.

Outside all the trees went by in a blur. The moon shone brightly against the night sky, and the road stretched on in front of you, with nothing else around, not even other cars. The soft music was the only sound besides the car itself. The pillow and blanket you'd brought were perfectly comfortable. But you couldn't fall asleep.

"Loki?" You whispered.

"Hmm?"

"I can't sleep."

He glanced over at you. "Try counting sheep."

You smiled a little. "Funny."

He pulled over on the side of the road next to a clearing.

"What are you doing?" You asked.

Loki got out and went around the car to open your door. He held out his hand to you. "Come. Bring the blanket as well."

Raising an eyebrow, you threw your pillow in the backseat, wrapped the blanket around you and took his hand. He led you a little ways into the clearing, just far enough that you were still within a reasonable distance from the car.

He snapped his fingers, and another blanket appeared on the ground. You laid on it next to each other. You unwrapped the blanket from yourself and draped over both of you. Loki wrapped an arm around you. You put your head on his chest.

"Back on Asgard, when I couldn't sleep I would go somewhere I could see the stars," he said.

You could see why. Out here, away from city, there was no light pollution to hide the stars. They shone bright together with the moon, dozens and dozens of them. Though you were sure it was nothing compared to the ones in Asgard, it was a beautiful sight.

Loki began telling you stories of his times in Asgard. Most you already knew, as he'd told you before, but his voice, combined with the way he was gently drawing patterns on your back with his fingertips and the serenity that seemed to encase this moment, made you close your eyes to focus on it just a bit more. You were asleep before you knew it.


	4. Chapter 4

"You're not gonna believe this," you said.

"What?" Loki asked.

He was driving. You were going through the brochure you'd picked up at the Illinois State Welcome Center, just like you'd done with the other states you'd gone through, to see if there were any landmarks or interesting things to see.

"The world's largest rocking chair is here," you said.

It was quiet for a long few moments, save for the radio, as you looked at Loki and Loki kept watching the road.

"We are not taking a detour to see the world's largest rocking chair," he finally said.

"Come on, please," you whined. "You wanted to see what the rest of America had to offer besides New York, this is an opportunity to do that! It wouldn't be a road trip if there weren't occasional detours, otherwise it would just be a boring car ride! Plus I've never seen this thing and I'll likely never get a chance again!"

You decided to do to him what he'd done to you over the music. You gave Loki your best puppy dog eyes. He glanced at you and rolled his eyes.

He waited a solid minute before sighing. "Fine. Give me the directions."

You squealed. "Thank you! Okay, so, you turn right once you get here..."  
\------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------  
"Which of your ancestors spent their time building this thing?" Loki asked.

"I don't know," you replied. "But it's massive. Props to them for finishing it. I would've thrown in the towel before I even got to the seat!"

It was massive. The world's largest rocking chair stood at 56.5 feet tall. There were few people around besides you and Loki to appreciate its size. In fact, those who were here were leaving.

"Loki," you whispered.

He turned to look at you. The smile on your face was full of mischief, immediately making him curious. "What are you planning, darling?"

"I wanna climb it."

"You want to climb the world's largest rocking chair?"

You nodded. "It's against the rules to touch it, let alone climb it, but I want to. No one else is around now. You in?"

Loki looked around. Sure enough, all the other people that were here when you arrived were gone. When he turned back to you, you were already at the base of the chair.

You were trying to climb up on its foot. It was surprisingly difficult. The wood was slippery and smooth, making it hard to get a good grip. And then you were floating up. You gasped and looked down.

Loki was smiling up at you. His fingers were glowing gold, and you were surrounded by the same color. He lifted you up to the seat and then lifted himself up.

You were giggling. It was absurd, standing on the seat of the world's largest rocking chair. Yet here you were.

The view was nice. You felt like you could see for miles. You also felt tiny. Granted, you felt tiny standing next to the thing, but standing on it? Yeah, you felt especially tiny now. But you didn't mind.

You pulled out your phone, taking pictures of the view and yourself on the chair. You even convinced Loki to join the photos.

When he lifted you two back down, you had to book it back to your car. A couple of guards had caught you trying to climb up on the leg again. When you had driven far enough away, you pulled over, took one look at each other and started laughing.


	5. Chapter 5

Finally, you made it to Mount Rushmore. Some people were already there, of course, to see the historic monument. You couldn't wait to see the look on Loki's face when he saw it. Especially since you'd only told him it was a carving on a mountain.

"By the Norns," Loki muttered. "What is that?"

"That is Mount Rushmore," you replied.

"Why are there faces carved into it?"

"Okay, so, over there is George Washington, America's first president. Over there is Abraham Lincoln, who was president during the Civil War. There is Thomas Jefferson, the third president, and there is Theodore Roosevelt. Basically they've been carved into the mountain to pay tribute to them. They're basically like celebrities."

"If you carve the faces of celebrities into the side of the mountain, where's Kim Kardashian?"

You snorted. "I never should've let you watch reality tv."

"Hang on."

Loki turned to you. "We came all this way to look at dead people's faces on a giant piece of rock."

"There's a certain...charm, to it."

He looked at the mountain again, then back at you and raises an eyebrow. "You tried."

"You know, you're one to talk," you said, pointing at him. "You had a statue of yourself built in Asgard."

Surprisingly, Loki didn't have much to say about that.  
\------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------  
"Alright, where to now?" You asked.

The map was spread out in the back of the car. Now that you'd seen Mount Rushmore, you had to decide where to go next. You kinda wished you'd planned this ahead of time. But then, this was just an added bit of fun to this adventure.

"I've looked up different places to visit in the country, and the Empire State Building keeps coming up," you suggested.

"Isn't that in New York?" Loki asked.

"Yup," you replied, popping the P.

"Seems a bit redundant to go back and then turn around and go somewhere else."

"We're on a road trip, my dude, this is what they're for."

"Redundancy and doubling back?"

"And not necessarily in that order."

He sighed.

"You know, Loki," you added, "it's not like if we go back now we'll have to stay. We can still leave again."

He held a finger up. "We go on one condition: afterwards we see that canyon all the travel brochures rave about."

"The Grand Canyon?" You checked.

"Yes."

"Deal."

You shook hands.


	6. Chapter 6

Staying comfortable on a long car drive is a tricky ordeal. The position you start in is certainly not going to be the one you finish in. Sideways was your current one.

"Y/N," Loki said.

"Yeah?" You replied.

"Get your feet back over to your side or so help I do it for you," he replied.

"Make me."

Sometimes you really wished you thought before you spoke.

Loki waved his hand, took off his seatbelt and turned to you.

"What the hell are you doing?" You shrieked.

He grabbed your ankles and pushed your legs back. You straightened them and locked your knees. He pushed again, and this time your legs went straight up in the air. You slid down against the door, flailing a bit in a moment of panic.

In that same moment, the momentum of your legs suddenly jerking back and you sliding down, Loki stumbled forward.

So now your head and upper back were pressed against the car door. Your lower back was on the seat. Your legs were up in the air. Your left hand was gripping the back of the seat, and your right hand was braced against the glove box. Loki was on top of you, between your legs. His legs were sprawled on the driver's seat.

"Well," you said after a moment of slightly awkward eye contact. "This is one of the most adventurous positions I've ever been in."

"Darling, there are plenty more I could show you," he replied.

You snorted and slapped his shoulder. "I'm sure you could, now take the car off magical autopilot, Hotshot."


	7. Chapter 7

"It's 1,454 feet tall, making it the fifth tallest building in the country and the 28th tallest in the world," you said.

You were both standing in front of the entrance to the Empire State Building.

"What was the purpose of building it?" Loki asked.

"I don't know, actually," you admitted. "I know there are offices inside and there's also an observation deck. The view is said to be amazing."

"Only one way to find out. Shall we?" He held out his arm. You took it, smiling.

No one was kidding when they said the view was amazing. The city seemed to be part of the sky, the tops of the buildings merging with the horizon. The sunset was a nice touch, too.

"What do you think?" You asked.

"I suppose there is a certain charm to it," Loki replied.

"Told you."  
\--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------  
"So, where to?" You asked.

"Where is this canyon I've heard so much about?" Loki asked.

"The Grand Canyon? That's here, in Arizona." You pointed on the map.

"I want to see how it measures up compared to its reviews."

"Ever the critic."

He pointed at you. "Ever the optimist."

You snorted.


	8. Chapter 8

If there was one thing you hated, it was driving during sunset or sunrise. No matter what, you always ended up with the sun in your eyes. Didn't matter if you had the visor down, or you were wearing sunglasses. It was always a problem.

"Y/N, you've kept the same face for the past hour and I can't help but feel a growing concern that you're going to vomit," Loki said.

You laughed. "I'm driving towards the sun, my dude, I can't keep my eyes open normally."

"But you're not going to vomit?"

"Trust me, my I'm-gonna-yak face is a whole lot worse than my the-sun-is-in-my-eyes face."  
\--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------  
"I don't understand why it's so hot," Loki complained. You were stopped at a gas station.

"I know right," you replied. "I hate it. I would much rather freeze than sweat my ass off. It's so much easier to warm up than cool off."

"The desert has its charms. The heat is not one of them."

"Amen."


	9. Chapter 9

"This, my dude, is what we've put up with the heat for," you said, gesturing to the sight before you.

"The Grand Canyon is 277 miles long, up to eighteen miles wide and 6,093 feet deep. The Colorado River runs through it and is responsible for forming it."

It was truly one of the best sites nature had to offer. The view was incredible. The different heights and shapes and widths of the rock that had been formed over centuries, the colors of the rocks.

"This is stunning," Loki said quietly.

"Better than Mount Rushmore?" You asked.

"Never in anyone's wildest dreams could that thing compare to this."

He narrowed his eyes and pointed at a horseshoe-shaped thing in the distance. "What is that?"

You squinted. "I think that's the skybridge."

"So you can go in there?"

"Yeah."

He started walking to it, dragging you along behind him.

"Whoa, whoa, Loki, slow down!" You protested. "That thing is seventy feet away from the edge, 4,000 feet above the bottom of the canyon and made of glass!"

He stopped at the entrance. "Your point?"

"There is no way in Hell I'm going in there," you replied, crossing your arms.

"I doubt they're stupid enough to let people on there without it being safe."

"Look, you can go, but I'm not. I don't intend to look down and see the potential I have of being sprawled on the canyon floor."

"Y/N, nothing will happen to you."

"How do know that?"

"Because I won't let anything happen."

You blinked.

"Besides, how would I explain it?"

You sighed. "You had to ruin the moment, didn't you."

Loki smiled.

"Fine, fine, I'll go," you relented.

You probably wouldn't ever admit it, but it was worth it. The view was even better than by the edge. It was like the canyon surrounded you just so you could admire it.

You clung to Loki never looked down.  
\-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------  
"What is this Alamo?" He asked.

"It's a battle sight turned museum thing in Texas," you replied.

The windows were rolled down, allowing the wind to blow throughout the car. You found it incredibly amusing that Loki was using magic to keep his hair in place.

"You wanna go there?" You asked.

"What would be the point?" He replied.

"We get to see another national monument."

He looked unmoved when you glanced at him.

"And extend the road trip that much more."

He nodded.

"Texas, here we come!" You shouted.


	10. Chapter 10

Somehow you ended up driving for nearly 24 hours. You weren't sure how. It hadn't been discussed, not even mentioned. It just kinda happened.

You were running on whatever drinks you could find that had caffeine in them and probably a bit too much sugar. All in all it wasn't a particularly good combination, but it didn't matter because it was working and you would keep going until you caught yourself dozing off. When that happened you'd call it quits.

You might be stubborn, but you weren't stupid.

You questioned the reason for all the cornstalks that stretched on for what seemed like miles. You hadn't passed anything else for hours, and you were beginning to wonder if you'd unknowingly driven onto the scene of that horror movie. What was it called? _The Horrors of the Cornstalks? Corn People? Corn Children? Children of the Corn._ That was it.

"All around me are familiar cornstalks, worn out cornstalks," you mumbled.

"Alright, Y/N, pull over," Loki said.

"Huh?"

"You've been driving for hours and you started singing, it's time for you to stop driving and sleep."

"Look at all these cornstalks though! Who the _hell_ took the time to plant them?! I haven't seen any scenery other than cornstalks for ages! I didn't know so many cornstalks could exist in one place!"

You paused and pulled over. "I should really go to sleep."

"Yes," he agreed. "Yes you should."


	11. Chapter 11

"It was a mission and fortress compound founded in 1718," you said. "It's where the Battle of the Alamo took place."

You were right; the Alamo was a museum. It was a nice-looking building, not as worn down as you'd imagined, given all that had happened.

"Why was there a battle?" Loki asked.

"Back then Texas wasn't a state, it was part of Mexico. During the Texas Revolution between the Texians and the Mexicans this was a pivotal point in the war. The Mexicans had been driven out of Texas, but they came back to try and take it back. When they came to San Antonio, the Texians here were forced to bunker in the Alamo. All of them were killed."

"That's...depressing."

"Yup."

It grew quiet as the two of you wandered on, looking around at the site.

"What was the point of coming here again?" Loki asked.

"Well, I've always wanted to visit the Alamo myself," you replied. And it's kind of a pit stop for where I really wanna go next."

He raised an eyebrow. "And where is that?"

You smiled. "Disneyworld."


	12. Chapter 12

"Y/N?"

"What?"

"What store is that?"

You were stopped at a red light, so you could afford to look where Loki was pointing. Oh. Oh dear.

"That is a special store that carries special things," you explained.

When he looked at you with a confused expression, you tried again.

"A _special_ store with _special_ things." You waggled your eyebrows for emphasis.

Judging by the grin spreading across Loki's face, you had an idea of where your next pit stop would be.  
\-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------  
"This is..." Loki trailed off.

"Not at all what you imagined?" You supplied.

"Not even remotely."

"Yeah, it is a bit underwhelming."

"A bit? I was expecting whips and chains, not machines and an alarming abundance of fake leather."

"I'm sure machines and leather have their charms."

"Speaking from experience, darling?"

You shoved his shoulder. "Wouldn't you like to know."


	13. Chapter 13

Going to Disneyworld was something you wanted to do since you were little. It was the pinnacle of childhood for you. Growing up, you always wanted to be a Disney character.

As you grew up and had more responsibilities that took up more of your time, that dream became more of a fantasy. Something that would never happen.

But it was happening. After all this time, you were stepping through the entrance to Disneyworld.

You couldn't help but be excited. All these characters that you'd grown up watching were suddenly alive and walking around and interacting with you and you couldn't help it. You teared up.

"Are you crying?" Loki asked.

"I'm happy," you muttered.

From Cinderella's Castle to Splash Mountain, you made sure each attraction was visited. The Haunted Mansion was your personal favorite.

You also took immense delight in the fact that you have a picture of you and Loki with Anna and Elsa.


	14. Chapter 14

Ah, nighttime. The time where you lay down and go to sleep, entering the dream world while the real world experiences things without you for a few hours.

Then you try sleeping in a car, and that goes flying out the window.

You and Loki were both tired after your adventures in Disneyworld. Since it wasn't particularly safe for either of you to drive, you decided to just pull over and sleep. Whoever woke up in the morning first would start driving.

Easy enough, right? Just lower the seats and take a snooze.

But you couldn't fall asleep. You kept drifting along that stupid edge, but you always ended up on the wrong side. You were trying for the umpteenth time when you heard it. The sound of footsteps on concrete. And then they stopped.

You waited for a moment. Maybe you were imagining it. You were tired enough. It's just your brain playing tricks on you. Yeah, that's all it is.

And then you heard them again. Now they were getting closer.

You rolled over in the driver's seat as quietly as you could. You had to bite your tongue to keep from screaming when you saw Loki was already awake and looking at you. You pointed to the window, and he nodded, holding a finger to his lips.

The footsteps had been getting closer this whole time. Your heart was pounding. What the hell was going on?

Loki was looking behind you now, at the window. You shut your eyes and forced yourself to take a deep breath. The footsteps stopped.

For a long, long few moments, nothing happened.

"Y/N," Loki whispered.

You opened your eyes. He was sitting up.

"Look outside."

"Hell no,” you hissed.

"It's not what you think, love. Look."

You slowly sat up and peeked out the window.

So it wasn't something crazy weird like there was no sign of anyone or anything at all. You had been expecting a person creeping around the car. What you got instead was a bobcat.

You breathed a sigh of relief. Still freaky? Yes. But you figured, with what non-existent experience and little knowledge you had, that if you stayed in the car and didn't make noise you'd be fine. The bobcat would finish lurking around and go on its merry way.

All things considered, though, you were glad Loki was with you. You wouldn't have had the guts to look out the window. Without him, you probably would've laid there, scared for the rest of the night.


	15. Chapter 15

It had been decided that since you had gone to Disneyworld, it was only fitting that you went to Disneyland. Well, you decided. Loki wondered why there was another Disney place.

Man, you thought walking into Disneyworld was awesome. It was second only to walking into Disneyland. Main Street, U.S.A. was teeming with people and characters and everyone's dreams coming to life. Not much different than Disneyworld, but still its own magic.

You weren't entirely sure why there was a Haunted Mansion here and one in Disneyworld. But you got to see both so you weren't complaining. (The one in Disneyland was your favorite.)

You also loved the Winnie the Pooh ride. That was completely adorable. You had a sneaking suspicion that Loki enjoyed it too.

"Y/N, why is the bear wearing a shirt but not pants?"

"No clue. Disney logic, probably."

If someone asked you to pick between Disneyland and Disneyworld, you wouldn't be able to.


	16. Chapter 16

There was an ongoing theme here. It seemed like no matter where you went, there was always some form of corn on either side of the road. You, for one, were sick of it.

"Why is there so much corn?" Loki asked.

"I wish I knew," you grumbled. "If I never see these things again in my life I will be absolutely thrilled."

"The hills are nicer."

"THE HIIILLS ARE ALIIIIIVE WITH THE SOUND OF MUSIC."

" _What?_ "

"Song from The Sound of Music. Good movie."

"You cannot resist slipping pop culture references into normal conversation, can you?"

"Nope."

"I was prepared for you to respond with another stupid reference."

"I'd rather look at your stupid face than spend one more second looking at this stupid corn."

You pulled over and switched with him.

"Just so we're clear," he said when you got back in, "I've had people fall to their knees in my presence because of my “stupid face”."

"Somehow I don't doubt that," you replied. "But we're not in Kansas anymore."

There was a pause.

"Did you just--"

"Yes. Enjoy the corn, handsome."


	17. Chapter 17

"Okay, I love this forest," you said.

"It is quite peaceful," Loki agreed.

"It's better than pictures."

"You say that as you take a picture."

"Gotta document it, dude."

"Why do you bother taking the Polaroids?"

"Because I'm gonna fill up at least part of my bedroom wall with them."

“Why?”

You glanced up from your bag. "I guess it's kind of like a...oh, I don't know what to call it. A memorial? No, that sounds too sad. A reminder? Yeah, a reminder."

"Of the trip?" He asked.

"Well...yeah. Honestly, Loki, this is the most fun I've had in a long ass time. Now brace yourself, I'm about to get kinda mushy," you added. "I'm glad I got to do this with you."

"In spite of the corn?"

"In spite of the corn," you giggled.  
\----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------  
You shot up. You swore you heard a noise. You waited, holding your breath.

Nothing. You let it out and laid back down. Maybe it wasn't such a good idea to spend the night in the forest. Sure, you were with Loki, and you were in the car, but you kept hearing noises. Was it most likely just wildlife? Yeah, probably, but your imagination suggested otherwise.

And it was _cold_. You didn't usually mind the cold too much (better than the heat), but this was intense. You could see your breath.

"Loki?" You whispered. "Are you awake?"

"Yes," he replied. "Are you hearing the noises as well?"

"Yeah. It's probably just wildlife, right?"

"Probably. What was that creature you were telling me about earlier?"

You swallowed. "The Wendigo?"

He nodded. "I can't help but remember the signs of its presence."

"It doesn't smell like death, though." You didn't like how your voice wavered. Wendigos terrified you.

From Native American folklore, Wendigos were the product of cannibalism. If a human ate the flesh of another human, a Wendigo was born. Impossibly long limbs, skin pulled taut against the bones, eyes milky white. And don't forget the teeth, long, sharp and built to tear into more human flesh in vain attempts to satiate the hunger they were cursed with.

Just what you needed to be thinking about on a freezing cold night in the woods. Fantastic.

And then the smell hit you. A sickly sweet, rotten smell that permeated the air around you. You gagged, covering your mouth and nose with the collar of your shirt. It didn't do anything. Loki was doing the same.

Your eyes watered, both from the smell and fear. You had to open your big mouth. You just had to mention the lack of the smell of death, and now it was there.

"Y/N," Loki whispered. "Stay very, very still. Do _not_ move."

Your eyes widened. He was looking out the front windshield. You decided that you didn't want to see whatever it was he was seeing. Your breathing quickened.

"Is it--"

"Yes," he cut you off.

You squeezed your eyes shut. You definitely didn't want to look at it.

Suddenly something slammed against the car, rocking it violently. You screamed and scrambled to turn the car on. When it finally started, you tore out of there.

It wasn't until you were some ways away from the forest--thank goodness you hadn't parked too far in--that you finally pulled over.

"Y/N?" Loki said.

You looked over at him. _Why the hell was he grinning?_ Wait. You knew that grin.

" _Loki!_ " you screeched, whacking his arm several times.

He was laughing at you.

" _That was not funny, you jackass!_ "

"I beg to differ, darling."

You stopped hitting him and crossed your arms, glaring at him. "I hate you."

Loki held up a finger. "You love me."

The corners of your lips twitched. You took a deep breath, fixing the blankets that had gotten twisted around you in the commotion.

"I saw that," he said.

"Saw what?" You grumbled.

"You almost smiled."

"Did not."

You laid back down.

"Y/N."

"What?"

"It was funny."

You huffed. But, once again, you couldn't keep your lips from twitching.

"Y/N, love, I saw that," Loki said.

You threw your hands up. "Alright, fine, I admit it, it was a little funny."

You turned to him. "You know I'm gonna get back at you eventually, right?"

"I'd be sorely disappointed if you didn't try."


	18. Chapter 18

"Where are we again?" Loki asked.

"Oklahoma," you replied. "About four and a half miles south of Freedom."

"Shall we let the captain know we found Freedom?"

You snorted. "Good idea. Anyway, Alabaster Caverns State Park is 200 acres of gypsum caves. It was established in 1953. This is gonna be awesome."

Wandering through the park was beautiful. The caverns were lit just enough so you could see but not too bright to take away from the alabaster. The two of you spotted pink and white alabaster in the various formations made by the rocks.

You gasped and pointed excitedly. "Loki, look! Black alabaster!"

Sure enough, veins of a pretty black rock were weaving through the cavern walls.

"What's so special about this?" Loki asked.

"Black alabaster can only be found here in Oklahoma, Italy and China, that's what!" You explained.

You stared at it, practically in awe. "I never thought I'd get to see it in person. It's much prettier like this."

"Indeed."

Stops like this were one of the things that made the long and tedious hours spent driving worth it. All disdain for corn disappeared in these moments.

Until Loki tricked you into walking into a field of corn later that day.


	19. Chapter 19

If there was one thing you were...unsure of, it was haunted houses. They were freaking cool, and the makeup and costumes were awesome. But in order to see those things in person, you had to actually go _in_ a haunted house. Getting scared wasn't your favorite thing to do. Scaring people? Whole other story.

When Loki had mentioned the idea of visiting one, you were hesitant. You disappeared into your mind for a bit, weighing the pros and cons of that particular adventure.

You didn't want to get scared. So no haunted house.

But the point of this road trip was to get out and see things and have an adventure. So go to the haunted house.

At the end of the day, the prospect of yet another adventure convinced you to agree. And the fact that Loki would be there with you helped.

Loki was in charge of picking the haunt you would visit. No big deal, right? Wrong.

He picked Netherworld. Of course he would pick the scariest haunted house. The ScareFactor had named them as Highest Rated Haunt in 2016.

It's important to note that, despite how freaked you were about it, you were excited to go.

You weren't sure how long you were inside. It could've been a few minutes, or an hour, but it felt like forever. The music, lighting and sets combined to create the perfect mix of terror and anticipation. Of course, the anticipation only added to your terror.  
The Flesh-Eating Flytrap and The Cavern of Insects in this year's theme were what scared you the most. The Flytrap and the Insects were so huge and gross and disturbing--it just creeped you out to no end.

Clinging to Loki's arm, you thought you were the only one scared in there. You were proven wrong when someone jumped out at you in The Murder of Crows section. You didn't see the person. All you saw was a figure lunge at Loki, and he yelped. You didn't know if he was aware, but his grip on your hand tightened significantly after that.

When you both made it out of the haunt and back to the car, you chuckled.

"That was..." Loki trailed off.

"Terrifying?" You supplied. "Spine-chilling? Blood-curdling? Nightmare-inducing?"

"Exhilarating."

You blinked, then smiled. "Yeah. Yeah, it kinda was."

"I wish you could have seen how terrified you were every time something so much as twitched in your direction."

"I wish I'd been recording when you screamed."

"I did _not_ scream."

"Right, of course, so sorry, my mistake."

"I didn't, Y/N."

"No no, you're right, you didn't scream."

There was a pause as you started the car. Before you began driving, you looked at him, smiling.

"I suppose it was more of a high-pitched yelp."

" _Y/N._ "


	20. Chapter 20

For the last stop on this adventure, you and Loki had decided to see another piece of what nature had to offer. Niagara Falls it was.

Standing in front of the waterfalls was breathtaking. You both stood there for a few minutes, just appreciating the sight and sound of it all.

"There's three waterfalls total." You had to shout to be heard over the roar of the falls. "Horseshoe Falls is right on the border between the U.S. and Canada, and American Falls and Bridal Veil Falls are both on this side."

You wandered around the park until you came across the way to the trolley. It went around the American Falls and Goat Island. Sadly, you didn't see any goats.

You both decided to leave when it started getting dark. Even though the park was open 24 hours, there was still the drive back home to keep in mind.

Loki took the driver's seat this time, leaving you in the shotgun seat. You both stared out into the distance for a while.

"Thank you for doing this with me," he said quietly.

You looked over at him. "Of course. Thanks for putting up with me."

The corners of his lips pulled up slightly. He looked back at you. "I'd like to do this again sometime."

You grinned. "Me too, Loki."


End file.
